PALOS VERDES, Calif. - The No. 24 Michigan State women's golf team improved by six shots in the second round at the Regional Challenge on Monday with a 14-over-par 298 and moved up three spots on the team leaderboard to 11th place. The Spartans are 34-over (304-298--602) through 36 holes.

The elite 16-team field features 11 teams ranked in the Golfweek Top 25, including seven in the top 10. The tournament is being hosted by Ohio State at the Palos Verdes Country Club.

Junior Trisha Witherby leads the Spartans after two rounds with a 3-over 145 (72-73) and is tied for 13th place. For the second day in a row, Witherby tallied the most birdies on the team with four and has nine total for the tournament.

Freshman Kelly Grassel delivered the best round of the day for the Spartans, shooting a 1-over 72. Starting the day from hole 10, Grassel produced two birdies and was at 1-under 35 through her first nine holes, and she finished with a 2-over 37 on holes 1-9. Overall, she is tied for 41st place at 8-over-par (78-72--150).

Senior Allyssa Ferrell improved her second round by three shots with a 3-over 74 on Monday and is tied for 46th overall at 151 (77-74).

Seniors Liz Nagel and Christine Meier each fired a 79 on Monday. Nagel is at 156 (77-79) through 36 holes, while Meier is at 162 (83-79).

Junior Lindsey McPherson, playing as an individual, shot a 79 in the second round and owns a score of 163 (84-79).

Defending national champion and top-ranked USC (567) leads the field by 14 shots over No. 2 UCLA (581). On the individual leaderboard, 2013 national champion Annie Park held her lead on the top spot with a 4-under 134 and has a five-shot advantage over her teammate, Kyung Kim.

The third and final round of the Regional Challenge is scheduled for Tuesday; live scoring will be available at golfstat.com.